After breakfast, Xie Ruan and Bo Jin walked back to the classroom together.
Because of what happened earlier, Xie Ruan kept a cold face and deliberately ignored Bo Jin. Unfortunately, Bo Jin, thick-skinned as ever, didn’t feel awkward at all, creating his own lively atmosphere with ease, which only made Xie Ruan more irritated.
“Save some energy for the stairs.”
He had a reason for this suggestion.
Unlike other schools where classrooms are organized by grade, to provide top students with a focused study environment, Principal Zhao had placed the experimental class on the fifth floor, claiming it would be “quiet.”
This meant the top students had to climb countless stairs every day, and they often vented about it on the school forum.
Thinking of this, Xie Ruan’s mood lightened. He glanced at Bo Jin and, with a smirk, said, “Bet climbing to the fifth floor every day is exhausting, huh? My class is on the third floor.”
His eyes crinkled, his lips curved smugly, practically waving a figurative tail.
Bo Jin found it endearing and chuckled, “What’s so tiring about that?”
“Oh, don’t try to act tough,” Xie Ruan assumed he was just putting on a brave front. He waved his phone playfully. “I’ve seen it—posts by your experimental class griping about it all the time.”
“That’s them. What does it have to do with me?” Bo Jin raised his eyebrows, looking Xie Ruan up and down before suddenly saying, “Fifth floor? I could carry you up without breaking a sweat.”
Xie Ruan: “…”
Honestly, he had never met anyone as confident as Bo Jin. Compared to him, Shen Xingyun wasn’t even a kid; he was practically a grandchild.
Noticing Xie Ruan’s expression, Bo Jin squinted. “Don’t believe me?”
Xie Ruan replied with a dismissive snort.
“Wanna try?”
Try what? For a moment, Xie Ruan was confused. Then, catching Bo Jin’s amused gaze, he suddenly understood.
He took a few steps away, looking at Bo Jin in disbelief. “Don’t you have any shame?”
They were in a crowded hallway, and he dared to say something like that!
“Don’t want?” Bo Jin looked utterly unbothered. “If you want it, take it.”
Xie Ruan: “…”
Who the h*ll wants it?!
Xie Ruan’s chest tightened, feeling like he’d be driven mad if he stayed around him any longer. He turned away, ready to storm off, when suddenly his arm was grabbed, and he stumbled straight into Bo Jin’s arms.
The faint scent of laundry soap drifted up, and he found himself enveloped in Bo Jin’s distinct scent. Heat rushed to his cheeks as he thought Bo Jin was actually going to carry him up the stairs. Embarrassed and annoyed, he was about to protest when Bo Jin’s low voice cut in, “Watch where you’re going.”
Looking up, he saw that a student in front of him had stopped walking. If Bo Jin hadn’t pulled him back, he would have crashed right into them.
A collision on the stairs could have been serious; one wrong step could mean a nasty fall. Feeling slightly guilty for misjudging Bo Jin, Xie Ruan stepped back and said sincerely, “Thank you.”
Bo Jin said nothing, only looking down at him.
Feeling self-conscious under Bo Jin’s gaze, Xie Ruan resisted the urge to straighten his clothes and asked, “What are you staring at?”
Bo Jin suddenly smiled, leaning in to meet Xie Ruan’s eyes. “Did you think I was going to carry you just now?”
Bo Jin took this rare chance to tease him with glee. “You know, I didn’t expect it. Are you that eager?” Watching Xie Ruan’s ears turn red, he added cheerfully, “If you really want that…”
Thinking about something privately and being called out for it were two different things. Flustered, Xie Ruan finally had enough and clamped his hand over Bo Jin’s mouth. “Shut up!”
When they finally reached the classroom, Xie Ruan felt like he’d shed a layer of skin. He silently vowed to himself to avoid Bo Jin in the future; he was afraid that spending more time with him would only make him angrier.
“Xie Ruan, come here for a moment,” the homeroom teacher said as they entered.
Xie Ruan guessed it must be about his transfer, so he composed himself, set his bag down, and followed them.
“You’ve been placed in Class 1. After morning study, go find Teacher Sun, the homeroom teacher there, and he’ll take you over. No need to move desks; just bring your personal things.”
Xie Ruan was stunned. “Class 1?”
How did he get assigned to the experimental class with his grades? There had to be a mistake.
Seeing his confusion, the teacher glanced around and, after the nearby students had moved away, leaned in and lowered their voice. “No mistake. Director Zhao requested it personally; he wants you to take your studies seriously.”
Director Zhao was a high-ranking school official, a close friend of Xie Ruan’s late father, and had always looked out for him. The reason Xie Ruan was able to attend Shijia High was all thanks to him. He had not only arranged for Xie Ruan’s admission but also waived his tuition and housing fees.
“I see.” Xie Ruan paused briefly, then said, “Please thank Uncle Zhao for me.”
The teacher hadn’t taught Xie Ruan long and didn’t know much about his family situation. Noticing his expression, they thought he was having second thoughts and quickly changed their tone. “No need to wait until after study hall. You can go now to get settled in.”
Not wanting to stay in Class 11 any longer, Xie Ruan thanked the teacher, texted Song Xinghe, and left with his things.
He had barely left when Shen Xingyun and his friends came in.
“Where’s Xie Ruan?” Zhao Hongfu looked around, puzzled. “Didn’t Li Mingliang just say he was here?”
“Probably out buying breakfast for Brother Yun,” Wang Zhao slouched bonelessly in his chair and glanced at Xie Ruan’s empty seat. “I knew he was playing games. He was all determined back on the field, but now he’s obediently fetching breakfast for Brother Yun.”
Shen Xingyun took his last gulp of water, tossed the bottle into the trash, and scoffed, “Who cares about him?”
“Yeah, what’s the point of all that drama?” Zhao Hongfu rubbed his growling stomach, pulling out his phone. “He’s outside anyway, so might as well grab me something too. Got up too late and didn’t have time to eat.”
As he habitually opened his friend list to find Xie Ruan, he was surprised not to find him.
Frowning, he turned to Wang Zhao. “Hey, Old Wang, check if you still have Xie Ruan on your friends list. I think he deleted me.”
“No way,” Wang Zhao said, opening the search box and typing in Xie Ruan’s name. “If he had the guts, he wouldn’t have…”
But he fell silent when the search came up blank.
“See? I told you! He really deleted us!” Zhao Hongfu grabbed Wang Zhao in disbelief. “Is he nuts? Doesn’t he know we could badmouth him to Brother Yun?”
Suddenly, Zhao Hongfu turned to Shen Xingyun. “Quick, Brother Yun, check if he deleted you too.”
“No way,” Wang Zhao interjected confidently. “You know him—he wouldn’t delete Brother Yun even if he deleted his mom.”
Remembering how hard Xie Ruan had tried to add Shen Xingyun, Zhao Hongfu chuckled, “True enough.” He leaned over, grinning. “C’mon, Brother Yun, let’s see if he’s actually playing hard to get.”
Feeling certain that Xie Ruan wouldn’t delete him, especially since it had taken him three months to get added, Shen Xingyun hit search and tossed his phone onto the desk without a second glance. The others quickly crowded around.
The noisy corner suddenly went silent, and a strange tension settled over them.
Shen Xingyun frowned in confusion.
What’s going on? Did Xie Ruan send another of his clingy messages?
But when he looked, his expression froze.
The search result was blank, just like Wang Zhao’s—no trace of Xie Ruan at all.
Wang Zhao and Zhao Hongfu exchanged shocked glances, genuinely not expecting that Xie Ruan would delete even Shen Xingyun.
This was taking “hard to get” way too far. What if he actually made Shen Xingyun mad and couldn’t get back in?
Though he couldn’t pinpoint why, Zhao Hongfu sensed something was off. Rubbing his nose, he chuckled awkwardly. “What’s Xie Ruan up to?”
He hadn’t lowered his voice, so his words were overheard by a student sitting in front of them.
The student turned around. “Looking for Xie Ruan?”
“Yeah,” Zhao Hongfu replied. “Do you know where he is?”
“You don’t know?” The student looked at him in surprise. “Xie Ruan transferred to Class 1!”
Zhao Hongfu stammered, “Trans… transferred…”
Shen Xingyun interrupted him. “You said Xie Ruan transferred classes?”
With his usual cold face and imposing air, Shen Xingyun’s expression made the student think nothing of it and replied with a smile, “Yeah, he just left when you guys came in. Took all his stuff, too. Check his desk if you don’t believe me.”
Only now did Shen Xingyun notice that Xie Ruan’s desk was completely empty. Even the chair was neatly tucked in, as if no one had ever sat there.
A cold silence fell over the room.
Without expression, Shen Xingyun lowered his gaze, lips pressed into a thin line.
Wang Zhao, after a moment’s surprise, slapped his thigh with a grin and looked at Shen Xingyun. “Hey, looks like he’s really done clinging to you. Congrats, Brother Yun, you’re finally free!”
“Yeah,” Zhao Hongfu nodded, feeling relieved after the initial shock. “Not in the same class now, so you won’t run into him as often.”
Before he could finish, a loud bang echoed as Shen Xingyun kicked his chair aside and stormed out, his face dark.
“Hey, Brother Yun, where are you going? Brother Yun!”
Ignoring them, Shen Xingyun strode out of the classroom, leaving Wang Zhao and Zhao Hongfu staring after him in shock.
“What’s up with him? Why’s he so angry all of a sudden?”
“No idea…”
***
Class 1 Classroom
Bo Jin leaned back in his chair, a smile tugging at his lips as he recalled the scene in the hallway.
Teasing the little guy was fun; the more he teased, the better it got.
“Yo, Brother Bo, what’s up with the dreamy look?” The class rep, Sun Haoxiang, caught on quickly and came over, waggling his eyebrows. “Something going on?”
Sun Haoxiang was the type to make a big deal out of anything, so Bo Jin decided not to indulge him, shutting his eyes to feign sleep. He’d had a rough night and could use a nap.
But the less Bo Jin said, the more curious Sun Haoxiang got. He wouldn’t let it go and nudged Bo Jin’s shoulder. “C’mon, bros don’t keep secrets from each other.”
Bo Jin lifted his eyelids, giving him a look. “Hands off.”
With his deep-set eyes and thin eyelids, Bo Jin’s naturally narrow gaze gave him an intimidating, superior aura. Sun Haoxiang’s neck prickled under his stare, and he instinctively pulled his hand back.
“Serves you right,” snickered He Mingjie, his deskmate, with no sympathy at all. “What were you expecting, pestering Dog Bo for no reason?”
“I was just curious,” Sun Haoxiang said, still not giving up, and boldly jabbed Bo Jin’s back again. “So tell me, Brother Bo, are you into a girl?”
It’s no wonder Sun Haoxiang kept pressing for details—Bo Jin had so much luck with admirers, he could practically run a farm! Every day, people would come by with gifts and love letters, regardless of gender. But no one had ever seen him accept anything or get close to anyone.
So was this a small thing? This was like spotting a rare flower bloom on an iron tree!
“Get lost,” Bo Jin snapped, his irritation mounting as his nap was repeatedly interrupted. He turned to He Mingjie, who was eavesdropping eagerly. “Get your deskmate out of here, be quick.”
Sun Haoxiang, not fully processing the remark, reflexively joked, “Brother Bo, you can’t tell a guy to be quick’!”
“My bad,” Bo Jin apologized smoothly, “didn’t realize I hit a sore spot for you.”
Sun Haoxiang: “…”
“You!” Sun Haoxiang, outraged, lunged forward. “Who are you calling ‘quick’? Explain yourself!”
“Calm down, Ah Xun,” He Mingjie tugged on his arm, holding him back. “You know what Bo Jin’s like. Why take the bait?”
“I’m not… D*mn it, He Mingjie! How many times do I have to tell you, don’t call me Ah Xun!”
Sun Haoxiang, standing at 190cm and weighing nearly the same, had a booming voice that nearly rattled through the classroom walls.
Bo Jin’s eyes shot open, and he frowned. “Shut up.”
Although Shijia High School was a private school, it was very strictly managed. The student council patrolled the hallways during all breaks, and any class that got too noisy would be penalized.
These points were tallied every week, impacting the homeroom teacher’s bonus, so they often reminded class leaders to keep the class quiet during breaks.
Despite Sun Haoxiang’s usual antics with Bo Jin, he knew better than to test Bo Jin when he got serious.
Mimicking a zipper across his lips, Sun Haoxiang fell silent but couldn’t stay still for long. Soon, he leaned over to He Mingjie and whispered, “Did you hear the big news at school yesterday?”
Sipping on his soy milk under the desk, He Mingjie answered without missing a beat, “That thing about Xie Ruan and Shen Xingyun from Class 11 breaking up?”
“You knew?” Sun Haoxiang deflated slightly, disappointed he couldn’t break the news. But he perked up again quickly. “Didn’t they say Xie Ruan was crazy about Shen Xingyun? Why’d he suddenly want to break up?”
“No idea,” He Mingjie downed the last sip of his drink, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand as he emerged from under the desk. “But dating breakups and makeups are pretty normal, right?”
Sun Haoxiang found this reasonable and nodded in agreement. After a moment, he asked, “By the way, have you ever seen Xie Ruan?”
“Nope.”
Since Class 1 and Class 11 were on different floors, the two groups rarely crossed paths. And with strict parental controls at home, He Mingjie had only recently gotten a phone and missed Xie Ruan’s peak popularity on the forum back in freshman year. So he knew of Xie Ruan but couldn’t put a face to the name.
“Never seen him either. They all say he’s good-looking,” Sun Haoxiang scoffed in disbelief. “I mean, he’s a guy—how good-looking could he be?”
“He’s quite good-looking,” the assistant class leader, Pan Yu, chimed in from the back, pushing up his black-framed glasses. “You’d definitely be smitten if you saw him.”
Sun Haoxiang was a serious looks enthusiast—show him a pretty face, and he’d be all over it.
“No way!” Sun Haoxiang waved his hand decisively. “I don’t go for guys; gay is not my territory. They’re all too weird. Can’t appreciate it.”
He Mingjie nudged him, laughing. “Hey, that’s not very politically correct of you.”
Sun Haoxiang responded without a hint of shame, “If I were politically correct, I wouldn’t be stuck at 12 points, and I wouldn’t have picked science!”
He Mingjie: “…”
Only you could spin it like that.
As Sun Haoxiang was about to say more, the classroom door suddenly opened. He turned, and his eyes lit up when he saw who walked in.
Pan Yu poked his back with a pen and whispered, “That’s Xie Ruan. That’s him.”
“Whoa!” Sun Haoxiang’s jaw dropped. “For real?”
After staring at Xie Ruan’s strikingly handsome face for a while, he blurted, “So this is what my long-lost good bro looks like!”
He Mingjie: “???”
Looking at him like he was seeing something bizarre, He Mingjie said, “Didn’t you just say you hated gays?”
Without hiding his aesthetic obsession, Sun Haoxiang replied righteously, “I’m a natural-born contradiction, alright? Just love proving myself wrong!”
He Mingjie: “…”
Before he could respond, Sun Haoxiang had already bounded up to Xie Ruan, striking up a conversation. “Hey, I’m Xun Haoxiang. Do you need anything in our class?”
“Xie Ruan,” he replied as he scanned the seating chart on the lectern, giving a brief self-introduction. “I just transferred from Class 11.” Sensing that his unique surname might cause confusion, he clarified, “Is it the ‘lavender’ Xun?”
“Nope,” Sun Haoxiang shook his head with a frown. “It’s ‘Xun*!’”
* says a different xun; but sound similar and doesn’t clarify
Xie Ruan: “…”
Right, Xun. What’s wrong with that?
Sensing Xie Ruan’s confusion, Sun Haoxiang patiently repeated his name and emphasized, “Xun. Xun! Like Sun Wukong, that Xun!”
Xie Ruan: “…”
Got it. So his surname is Sun, and he’s called Sun Haoxiang.
The enthusiastic new classmate seemed genuinely happy to have Xie Ruan there. “I’m the class rep. If you need anything, just let me know. Don’t hesitate—I’ve got tons of free time.”
Suppressing a laugh, Xie Ruan nodded. “Thanks.” He looked down and continued scanning the seating chart.
There were only two empty seats left in Class 1—one by the trash can, and the other beside Bo Jin.
There was no need to think it over. Carrying his bag, Xie Ruan headed straight for Bo Jin’s desk.
Not only was he still curious about Bo Jin and his reasons for the previous year’s suicide attempt, but, given a choice, no one in their right mind would choose the seat next to the trash can.
Bo Jin was lying on his desk, sound asleep. Xie Ruan thought about waiting for him to wake up, but remembering that scene in the hallway earlier, any feelings of sympathy vanished.
He gritted his teeth, reaching out to wake him, only to be stopped by a flustered Sun Haoxiang, who rushed over, saying, “Hey, not here!”
Glancing at Bo Jin, Sun Haoxiang lowered his voice and said, “Brother Bo doesn’t sit with anyone. Go take the seat in the back instead.”
Xie Ruan turned around, confused. “Huh?”
He doesn’t share desks? What’s with that?
Sun Haoxiang nodded, “Seriously, I’m not messing with you. He really doesn’t sit with anyone.”
Fearing Xie Ruan might take it the wrong way, Sun Haoxiang added, “It’s not just about you—it’s his habit. Same rule for everyone. Ask Old He; we’ve been classmates since first year.”
Alright then.
Xie Ruan wasn’t one to make a fuss and didn’t think himself special. Since Sun Haoxiang insisted, he didn’t press further and mumbled, “So many weird quirks,” as he picked up his bag to head to the back.
After all, the seating wasn’t permanent. He’d just deal with it for a few weeks.
Suddenly, a hand extended in front of him, blocking his path.
It was slender, with fair skin and distinct joints, delicate veins visible under the skin, perfect enough to model hands.
Xie Ruan was momentarily dazed. The next second, a lazy but slightly groggy voice sounded beside him, “Where are you going? Sit here with me.”
